


Darkest Knight

by lunarknightz



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman (Movies - Nolan), Batman - All Media Types, Smallville
Genre: Alternate Universe, Crossover, Crossover Pairings, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-25
Updated: 2016-09-25
Packaged: 2018-08-17 07:13:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8134969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lunarknightz/pseuds/lunarknightz
Summary: Superman died.  Superman is still dead.  And those he left behind have to recreate their world without him.





	1. Chapter 1

_Part The First: From The Ashes_

Her world had transformed completely, a change as radical between that of day to night.

Five months ago, Chloe Sullivan Kent had been a reporter at the Daily Planet. It was her dream job, and a job that she excelled at. She worked alongside her best friend, who was also her husband. Chloe and Clark lived in an attractive but moderate apartment in Metropolis. Their lives were crowded and busy, but they always managed to somehow make time for one another, and Clark and Chloe’s relationship flourished because of their dedication and love for one another.

Chloe Sullivan Kent did not exist anymore. She had died alongside her husband in the middle of a broken street in Metropolis. In her place, reborn like a phoenix from the ashes, was a curious creature named Chloe Wayne.

Chloe Wayne was physically identical to Chloe Sullivan Kent, but that was the only similarity. Chloe Wayne did not work, but was a lady of leisure, and only appeared outside the home to attend a few social functions with her husband or support certain charities. She lived in palatial Wayne Manor on the bluffs outside of Gotham City, a house that had been in her husband’s family for six generations, with gothic styled architecture and cold, white, marble everywhere. Any item, any luxury that she could wish for, could now be hers. Her husband was a stranger- a man with whom she shared a bedroom- but not a bed. They were barely friends, not lovers, but a couple thrown together by despair and tragedy. 

Stuck in a world so far away from all that she had known and loved, Chloe was fading. In the change from day to night, she had simply become a shadow.

 

***

 

In hindsight, Bruce wasn’t sure he was ready for this- for being a husband, a family man.

It had been all too long since he’d had a family. Was this what it was supposed to feel like? Fear? Uncertainty? Doubt?

The League of Shadows had taught him not to second guess decisions in combat; but nothing of life outside of fighting- nothing of living.

Being Batman came easier to him, in many ways, than being Bruce Wayne. Yet, to protect her, to keep a promise that he’d made to Clark years ago, he’d offered her a life, offered her a role that would require him to be Bruce instead of the Bat. 

He’d given Chloe a ring, and become a husband within a month of Clark’s death. Within a year, Bruce would become a father.

That thought scared the shit out of Bruce. 

Bruce sighed as he climbed the stairs to his bedroom. As Chloe’s pregnancy progressed, more and more thoughts clouded his brain. Would he make a spectacular mess of this? 

Exhausted from a long night on patrol, Bruce didn’t bother to change out of Gotham University T-Shirt and sweatpants he’d put on to make his way to the Bat Cave this morning. Barely registering that Chloe was still sleeping in bed, he climbed in beside her, and quickly fell asleep.

 

*** 

 

She felt a warm presence, and the muscled and defined arm of a man, slung around her waist.

“Clark?” Chloe muttered softly as her eyes fluttered open.

It was not Clark, it was Bruce. Her husband.

Bitter tears sprung to her eyes. Why did Clark have to die? He was a superhero. He was stronger, different, better than other men. He wasn’t supposed to die. And yet Bruce, Bruce who possessed no metahuman or otherwordly powers, continued to live. It seemed like a cruel joke.

She was grateful to Bruce. After the Kents were attacked and placed in the hospital following Clark’s death, after Diana discovering that Doomsday’s release wasn’t accidental, after Ted had intercepted a messages about scheduled hits on Lana, Pete, and Chloe herself, after she’d taken the test and the strip turned pink, she hadn’t known what to do. She’d been lost and terrified, sobbing on the floor of the Watchtower in J’onn’s arms, and he had offered a solution. 

“I can protect you.” Bruce said, taking off the cowl and exposing his face. 

“No one can protect me.” Chloe shook her head and laughed bitterly. “Everything is ending.”

“Marry me.” His voice was sincere. “As Bruce Wayne, I promise that you and your child will never want for anything. I…can take you far away to where no one would even attempt to hurt you. I can promise you…and Clark’s child…a future.”

Chloe had surprised even herself when she said yes.

They were married the next morning in Gotham City, by a judge, Rachel Dawes, who was an old friend of Bruce’s. Diana and Alfred were the witnesses.

For the first time in her marriage to Bruce, Chloe sat up slightly and watched him sleep. The hours they kept were usually so different- being Batman kept Bruce out to all hours of the night, and years of being at the Daily Planet had forced her into becoming a morning type person.

It was the first time she’d ever seen him relaxed, as a slight smile graced Bruce’s face. He had good features, that was true- he was an exceptionally handsome man. He wouldn’t have made People’s List of Most Beautiful People if he wasn’t. And oh, when he first resurfaced in Gotham, Chloe had made a big show of placing a picture of him in her cubicle at work- taunting Clark, who didn’t think much of all of Bruce after attending his infamous 30th birthday party years ago. But Chloe’s heart had been Clark’s since Jr. High, and she didn’t spend much time dwelling on Bruce Wayne- even after Clark came home one day, muttering incredulously that Bruce Wayne was Batman. 

She’d figured it out a long time before that, but never said a thing until Clark took Chloe to dinner to meet Bruce, just after they’d become engaged. 

Chloe gasped when she saw Bruce’s back. His fair skin was covered in scars, in long, ragged scratches and what appeared to look like bullet holes. 

Clark’s skin hadn’t looked a thing like that. But Bruce wasn’t bulletproof.

Chloe had prided herself on being a good superhero wife. One of the better ones, she told herself. Chloe didn’t run off to the Press, seeking celebrity like Jean Loring, or divorce him during a rough time, like Jenni Rayner had done. She stayed, she supported, she understood, she loved. 

With Clark, supporting had come easily. She knew Clark from the inside out. Clark was a part of her soul. When he hurt, she knew why. She could comfort and support him.

She didn’t know Bruce. He was a foreign and exotic creature- someone that she did not yet understand. She couldn’t comfort him, nor could she stand beside him blindly, trusting that he was in the right. Chloe knew not why he hurt or where the scars came from.

“I can find out.” Chloe whispered. For the first time in five months, she had a mission. A purpose. She would learn about Bruce. Get to know him. Become his friend, and so that they could be partners together in the raising of her child.

Clark’s child would deserve no less.

No longer would she let the world, the shitty circumstances that fate had dealt, control her. Chloe would rise above them, and create a new world from the ashes of the past.


	2. Refuse Thy Name

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Superman died. Superman is still dead. And those he left behind have to recreate their world without him.

A fine oil painting of Bruce and Chloe Wayne on their wedding day hung in the dining room. Chloe looked like a princess in an ivory white dress, while Bruce was quite striking in a designer Armani tuxedo. Blissful and excited expressions graced their faces. 

The painting had been commissioned recently by Alfred Pennyworth, who had told the artist it was a gift for the couple’s upcoming anniversary. He supplied the artist of a photo, which was actually a manipulation done with PhotoShop, using a picture of Chloe from her wedding day to Clark, and a picture of Bruce taken at a society ball.

Chloe stood in the dining room, gazing up at the painting, though it hurt her to do so. 

This picture was her reality now. 

For the safety of her child, Chloe had denied her past and wiped the slate clean.

_The night after Bruce proposed, the night before their wedding, Chloe sat in the observatory of the Watchtower, gazing down at the Earth below._

_“I’ll never be safe.” She muttered softly. “Oh…Clark..”_

_“Chloe?” Diana said gently, placing a hand on her shoulder. “A small problem has come up, and we’re trying to figure out how to best address it. Would you please join us?”_

_Chloe nodded, and followed Diana into the meeting room, where a large metal table, surrounded with metal chairs, each bearing the insignia of a JLA member, was located. Diana steered Chloe towards Clark’s old chair, and Chloe traced the engraved “S” symbol before she sat down. Diana sat to her left, and Bruce was already seated to her left. A group of league members were already sitting in their assigned places around the table- Green Arrow, Black Canary, Zatanna, Green Lantern, The Flash, Martian Manhunter, Blue Beetle, and The Atom._

_“Ted?” Diana said, effectively calling the meeting to order. “Your findings?”_

_“It’s one big mess.” Ted replied, pushing back the hood of his Blue Beetle costume. “I’ve been working in concert with Roy, trying to figure out more about this situation- it’s quite puzzling.” He sighed. “Doomsday’s release was most definitely not an accident. The creature was created with a singular goal in mind- to destroy Superman.” He sighed. “We can’t determine who exactly was behind his creation or release as of yet, but we have our suspicions. It stands to reason, as well, that the person behind the creature is the same person responsible for the hits on everyone who Clark loved or held dear.”_

_Chloe felt her stomach rise, her nausea rising. “There have been more?”_

_Ted nodded. “Fortunately, the Justice League was able to step in, and we’ve been able to stop any attempts. Lana and Pete have been relocated to a safe house in Fawcett City, where Captain Marvel is keeping a close eye on him. Hawkman was able to save your cousin, Lois from an attack in Metropolis this morning. We’ve got the majority of the Green Lantern Corps watching over your in laws, who remain in critical but stable condition at Smallville General.” He paused slightly. “They’ve also ordered a hit on Clark Kent, which means, if nothing else, that whoever is behind this is unaware of Superman’s dual identity.”_

_“I’m still on the chopping block.” Chloe said, tears running from her eyes. “I’m known as a friend of Superman. Heck, I named him. They won’t stop until they kill me.” She sighed._

_“We’ve come up with a way to protect you.” Bruce said softly. “It’s not pretty, and frankly, it goes against much of what we all fight for, but given your situation…”_

_“Bruce?” Chloe said, wiping her tears away. “What in the hell do you mean?”_

_“To protect you, Chloe,” Zatanna spoke from across the table, “We would have to erase your connection with Clark…with Superman. As long as you’re connected, neither you nor your child would be safe.”_

_“You can’t just erase my connection with him! For crying out loud, I’ve known Clark for most of my life! We’ve been friends, and partners at the Daily Planet…that can’t be erased! My memories…my connections to Clark-that’s all I have left!”_

_“Magic.” Zatanna said softly. “I can do a spell, and change, well, people’s memories of the past. Everything would still have happened, but only those we chose to remember it, will remember it.”_

_“We’d make up an alternate past.” Bruce took over. “Say that you still went to Smallville High with Clark, but went someplace else for college- to Gotham. We met while you were in college, and started dating. After you graduated, we got married. Now you’re expecting our first child.” Bruce’s voice was calm, as if erasing the world’s memories was something he dealt with everyday. “You and your child would be safe. Chloe Wayne would be safe.”_

_Chloe sighed. “I....I....need a minute.” She fled the boardroom and returned to the observatory window. She stared, stared down at Earth, trying to make sense of the mix of emotions and sorrow that cluttered her mind._

_To erase people’s minds…to change the past…it seemed like an awful violation. But what was the alternative? Living on the Watchtower for the rest of her life? Raising her child in hiding? Fearing the day that someone would catch up to them? What kind of life would that be for a child? What would Clark do? He’d do whatever he could, to protect her, and their baby, she knew. As was Bruce…he was doing what he could. It was an imperfect choice- but this was an imperfect world, and what other choice did she have?_

_Chloe walked back into the boardroom, and sat down in Clark’s chair. “We should do it.” Chloe said, her voice strained. “It’s our only choice.”_

Alfred entered the dining room, and saw Chloe gazing at the portrait. “Chloe, how can I help you?” 

His voice brought Chloe out of her reverie. “Alfred, good morning.” She said with a smile. “You’re just the man I wanted to see.” 

“And just how so?” Alfred said. “If it’s something Bruce said…then it’s probably true. 

She shook her head. “I’ve spent so long, Alfred, trying to live in a past that no longer exists. I still miss Clark like crazy, but I…I have to start looking to the future. Sooner than later, my child will be born, and…I want to raise this baby right. I want him, or her, to have a happy childhood, with parents who love him, who love each other.” She sighed deeply. “I’m not over Clark, and I don’t think I’ll ever be. I don’t even know Bruce. He’s a stranger to me, and he’s my husband. And…I guess what I’m asking, Alfred, is for your help. Help me get to know Bruce. He’s so closed up inside. I need to know what his life has been like. What he’s lost…what he’s gained… Bruce is a stranger to me, and I don’t want him to be, I can’t stand for him to be!” 

Alfred stood silently during Chloe’s speech. He’d been quite fond of Chloe upon their first meeting, and grown even fonder over the months she’d spent at Wayne Manor. She was a lovely girl, so hurting, so broken, so much like the man she now called her husband. And now, here she was, standing in front of him, with a most extraordinary offer. Of all the friends and lovers Bruce had over the years, had bothered to do what Chloe was. 

“It’s a perfectly good idea.” Alfred replied with pride. “What would you like to know?” 

**Author's Note:**

> originally posted June 2005


End file.
